NBC's "Nightly News" last night examined the cost of sending a child to the IMG Academy, with NBC's Lester Holt introducing the report by noting with the World Series currently underway, "many kids and their parents must be thinking of what it would be like to get a shot at the big leagues." Holt added, "It turns out that some are working hard and spending major money to increase the chances of making that fantasy come true." The taped report from NBC's Craig Melvin noted the IMG Academy is an "elite boarding school and athletic training compound," costing $48,000 for baseball tuition, $18,000 for school tuition and $10,000 for travel and a summer league, for a total of $76,000 to send one child. Academics, while important, "take a backseat." Melvin: "All that money doesn't just buy you private coaching or strength and agility training. You also get access to cutting-edge sports-performance technology." Melvin said the program is "designed to gives kids an edge at an early age. Some here are as young as eight." But Melvin said child experts "warn some parents push their kids to chase their dreams with little guarantee" ("Nightly News," NBC, 10/27).
